


record this

by baecobz



Series: in every universe [16]
Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Airports, Awkward Flirting, Celebrity Crush, First Meetings, Fluff, M/M, YouTube, Youtuber AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-05
Updated: 2018-06-05
Packaged: 2019-05-18 09:51:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,000
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14850512
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/baecobz/pseuds/baecobz
Summary: yukhei gets to the airport at an ungodly hour and is ill-prepared to deal with cute boys and their easy conversations.or: yukhei has a slight crush on the popular youtuber that makes up his social media feed. running into said youtuber doesn't really make it any easier.





	record this

**Author's Note:**

> OKAY AHHHHHHHHH the very talented [nina](http://twitter.com/ninadrawthings) made [some art for this fic](https://twitter.com/ninadrawthings/status/1116699469427302400)!! and it's so so cute!!!!!! omg dkjskjfsljkls
> 
> //  
> this is the last fic in this series! sorry for not giving a bigger heads up, but i wasn't really sure until today :'/  
> i'm still gonna write more markhei in the future, just not.. everyday jsfkld they're def gonna be longer tho, and some of them will be sequels/etc to the brief fics ive written for the past weeks or so!  
> with that in mind, i hope u like this!!!

yukhei has never considered himself lucky.

maybe it was because of that incident during his eighth birthday party where three of his friends found four leaf clovers but he couldn’t even find a regular one (because no, renjun, it’s nice that you would give yours up, but it’s not the same).

perhaps it was because of the dozens of lotteries and raffles he had entered, having won a fat total of 0.

but really, yukhei thinks, maybe he’s the luckiest person in the world, because all of his luck had been been building up to this one moment-- four am at the bwi airport, staring at a barefaced mark lee in all of his stunning, five foot nine glory.

sure, he doesn’t look the same as he does in all of his shoots, but he still looks  _ good _ . yukhei can’t even help the way he fumbles for his phone, taking hesitant steps forward before he shuffles up to the younger boy.

and yes, mark may technically be younger, but yukhei’s smart enough to know that there’s enough of a social difference between them to keep them from ever being on casual speaking terms. for one, mark is well loved and admired by literally everyone, and he’s  _ famous _ . yukhei’s almost insignificant personal channel can’t even dream of comparing itself to mark’s successes as either a vlogger or overall celebrity.

he walks up with shaky hands, trying not to think about the fact that  _ mark lee _ is standing in front of him, with what looks like absolutely zero security or accompaniment. that thought alone is a bit worrying, but yukhei focuses on appreciating the chance that the universe has so kindly presented to him.

he has a spare camera in his other hand, just filming his feet, really, and presses record. even if mark snaps at him, turns him down completely, yukhei knows he’ll have enough audio to replay it and sigh over.

mark’s not a bad guy, he knows this, so any lashing out would probably be yukhei’s own fault.

“uh, hi?” yukhei waves a little, if only so the movement catches mark’s attention. it does, and then he’s left floundering, because nothing in the world could have prepared him for soft brown eyes looking up at him from behind wide circle frames. yukhei has seen mark in glasses before, has been able to appreciate it thanks to twitter and the briefest of clips in his vlogs, but it’s nothing compared to real life. mark just looks  _ soft _ , warm and gentle and everything good in the world, and yukhei can’t help but stare.

“did you need something?” mark says quietly, but he’s smiling; yukhei must be really,  _ really _ lucky, because mark doesn’t seem bothered at all by the fact that yukhei had just come up to him and gaped.

“i, uh-- i just wanted to say that i’m a huge fan. of you. your stuff. yeah.” yukhei laughs, and although it’s partially at his own failure to interact properly, mark giggles back. “if it’s okay, could we, like-- you know--”

“do you wanna take a picture together?” mark asks easily, and yukhei nods back. maybe he does it a little too fast, because the cap that had been covering his bed head falls to the ground with a small noise.

“oh, shit, sorry--” he leans to get it, but mark just taps his shoulder, still laughing.

“hey, i got it. open up your phone, alright?”

yukhei’s still not sure if he’s the luckiest or least lucky person in the world, because even as he continues to mess up, mark just moves on unbothered, picking yukhei’s cap off the floor and pulling it snug onto yukhei’s head. yukhei almost drops his phone at that, but he catches it, and mark laughs again. yukhei likes hearing him laugh, even debates telling mark to make a compilation video of his giggles alone.

yukhei slides open his phone to the camera roll, and ah, yes, the universe truly does hate him-- the glaring  _ storage full _ stares back at him, almost as if to say,  _ what, you thought life could be this good? _

he makes the tiniest little noise of distress, letting his entire heart fall through his chest and shatter in the pit of his stomach. he looks up, lips downturned, and sighs. “sorry, i don’t have space on my phone-- thanks anyways, i’ll just--”

“hey, why don’t we use my phone?” mark offers, and yukhei stares, mouth caught open. mark’s head is tilted to the side like it’s a brilliant suggestion (it is, but it’s also reliant on the fact that mark is willing to get yukhei’s number, and  _ oh my god _ ). it doesn’t help that the angle lets mark’s bangs fall into his eyes, soft and boyish under the rising sun, and more than enough reason for yukhei’s heart to slam on the breaks.

_ alert! cute boy is being extra nice! proceed with caution and careful flirting! _

“but you have a samsung.” yukhei says dumbly, having failed all previous experiences with cute boys. “like, all of your twitter selfies are super low quality.”

“i’m not even gonna respond to that,” mark snorts, instead holding his own phone out (the samsung logo seems to laugh at yukhei, saying,  _ hah mark knows i suck but he still defends me, don’t you wish you were me _ ) and smiling wide. “hey, xuxi, right? c’mere.”

yukhei pretends not to feel the lurch in his heart as he steps hesitantly closer, offering a wide smile and a peace sign. just as mark goes to take the picture, yukhei balks, turning to stare at mark.

“wait, how do you know my name?”

mark grins, sheepish, and shrugs.

“c’mon, look at the camera.” he says instead, holding up a small finger heart. yukhei can’t really say no to that, or to anything that mark says, so he just nods and tries to give a normal smile. his heart is still beating a mile a minute, the implications that mark  _ knows _ him somehow weighing heavy against his lungs.

there’s no way mark has seen his channel, right? if anything, maybe mark saw one of his many heart emoji-filled tweets, or a particularly aesthetic picture from his instagram, or--

“stop thinking so much.” mark pouts, letting his hand fall back to his side. when he looks at yukhei, it’s hard to remember how to breathe. “some fans linked me to your videos. let’s take another picture, okay? one where you’re not working your brain into overdrive.”

yukhei gapes out a quiet  _ whaaaat _ as mark holds his phone back up, smile already plastered across perfect skin. does mark even get acne? or is he immune to it in the same way he’s immune to failure or one sided crushes?

“smile!” mark laughs, poking at yukhei’s cheek with feather light fingers and the gentlest of touches. yukhei does smile, if only because mark is right next to him, and he’s  _ seen yukhei’s videos _ . it’s exhilarating, really, to get that brief recognition, and it’s certainly enough to ensure that his smile is genuine. “here, can you put your number in? i can text you the pictures.”

yukhei reaches out with barely shaking hands, tapping in his number while his eyes try not to shift to mark’s lopsided smile. it’s not even a full smile, but it’s bright and wonderful and mark’s, so yukhei thinks it’s pretty great.

he hesitates for a moment when it comes to his contact name, settling on a simple  _ xuxi _ with an airplane emoji. he tacks on a heart, too, for the gays.

“cute.” mark eyes the name and pockets his phone after making sure it’s saved properly. “so, are you flying home or away?”

“uh, to see my parents,” yukhei replies, although it isn’t even what mark had asked about,  _ ugh _ , “they’re in hong kong.”

“oh, that’s cool! i’m flying out to cali.”

“yeah, i--”  _ saw you mention it on the snapchat the other day _ , yukhei almost says, before he remembers that he’s not supposed to act like a complete creep when he’s trying to impress someone. “uh, i mean, california is cool.”

mark gives him a pinched look before settling down into one of the (uncomfortable) plastic chairs.

“listen, don’t stop yourself from saying stuff because-- because i’m, like, vaguely known to the public or because you’re a fan. okay? just talk to me normally. like i’m your friend.”

“a friend.” yukhei licks his lips, desperately trying not to scream at the thought. “yeah, a friend. okay, i can do that.”

“so, xuxi, where are you flying from? do you live on the east coast?”

“no, i was visiting a friend in chicago, but i got laid over here,” yukhei shrugs, “so i’m only going home after i visit my parents real quick. i live over in toronto, actually. moved there a few months ago.”

“no way!” mark grins, leaning forward in his chair. yukhei’s not sure when he sat down next to mark, but he appreciates the fact that the other boy can’t see his knees buckle if they’re both sitting, “you’re so close to me, that’s wild! you know, we should hang out some time, when we’re both back in canada.”

“sure.” yukhei coughs out, because although he can’t flirt to save his life, he can at least respond to questions well enough. and invitations to hang out? most definitely. “just, uh, text me?”

“yeah, for sure.”

a voice comes over the intercom, telling passengers on flight 47-a to start boarding, and mark stands up with a sigh.

“oh, is that your flight?” yukhei asks. if he sounds disappointed, it’s probably just a trick of the light. or of the ears. the sound waves. whatever.

“yeah. i’ll text you the pictures when i land, okay? and let you know when i’m back home. it was nice meeting you, xuxi.” mark gives one last wave before he’s turning around and tugging his suitcase away (it’s covered in stickers of the cutest cartoon animals yukhei had ever seen, and his heart melts even more at the sight of it).

yukhei watches, on the edge of his seat, as mark has to stand and wait in line for a minute before he’s trudging towards the plane, giving yukhei one last smile from over his shoulder. he waves, briefly, and yukhei barely gets a chance to wave back before mark is ducking past the boarding agent and disappearing through the tiny plastic doorway.

that’s when yukhei is finally able to relax, boneless as he slinks into his seat and stares at the ceiling. he still has an hour or so until his flight (curse you, summer storms), which gives him plenty of time to reread mark’s recent tweets and try to regain feeling in his chest.

it’s as he slouches that he remembers that his video camera is still recording, so he hurries to stop the footage and turn it off. maybe, if he’s feeling particularly daring come editing day, he’ll leave a bit of his awkward conversation in. bragging rights, or something.

even so, the feeling is nothing compared to the absolute giddiness that comes almost a day later when yukhei arrives in hong kong, a dozen image attachments from an unknown number and a slew of notifications from twitter. when he clicks on the too familiar bluebird app, the last thing he expects is to see that mark had tweeted at him with a simple, “hey @xuxis99 it was rlly nice meeting you today!! you’re even cuter in person lol can’t wait to catch up when we both get back from our trips”

he loses his luggage and almost breaks his nose trying to get off the plane, but yukhei figures it’s just the universe trying to balance everything out. can’t give him too many great things at once, right?

mark’s smiling face looks up at him from his new lockscreen, and yukhei tucks his phone away, grinning stupidly. it feels good to be the luckiest guy in the world.

**Author's Note:**

> fun facts about this au:  
> -mark went viral after he uploaded a 6min drunk freestyle rap about how hes "so gay and boys are so cute"  
> -he posts vlogs frequently but also has an ep in the works!!  
> -yukhei's youtube channel is mostly a bunch of rants (his most recent vid was about international capitalism, and the one before it was abt dogs at protests and cute signs he had seen them wearing)  
> -yukhei travels a lot? mostly bc he has family/friends all over and visits them bunches  
> -yukhei doesnt have a huge following bc he switches between languages sm so its a lil hard to follow but once he starts having subs? its all over for everyone else
> 
> thank u for reading!! (esp if uve been keeping up with this whole series-- ure the real ones and i lov u)  
> talk to me abt this fic/markhei/anything else over on [cc](http://curiouscat.me/6woojin) or [twt](http://twitter.com/woo6in) !!


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